Mobile Casinos Awaiting Their Time in the Sun

In 1997 the gambling world was forever changed when Inter Casino (or 888 Casino - they both claim to be the first online) took its first player bet in 1997. Within three years, some 2000 casinos flooded onto the net in what seemed like a gold rush. Player numbers and turnover volumes swelled exponentially and the traditional casino landscape would never be the same again.

Then poker rooms joined the party, and industry wide revenues from online poker increased from $92 million in 2002 to just over a $billion in 2004. That's over 1000% in just two years.

And while it's fair to say that growth in both sectors has now slowed substantially and the industry has seen some rationalization in operator numbers, what is still clear is that the internet and gambling are a winning fit. The gambling offering is one that can be delivered over the internet instantly, providing the player with fulfillment in real time. There is no purchase and 2 day wait for the product to arrive, only to find it to be the wrong spec or not exactly what you were looking for.

But now there is a new platform that some believe will be the next revolution in virtual gambling, and that will be just as successful a fit…mobile gambling.

Mobile gambling is actually not new. The first casinos to offer casino games for play on WAP enabled handsets launched their products in late 2006. And it would be fair to say that uptake hasn't been anything like the early days of PC internet gambling. But operators are still very optimistic that mobile casino games are still to have their moment in the sun. It's just that this moment has been delayed somewhat by one crucial part of the mobile gaming equation…handsets.

While WAP enabled handsets available in 2006 were able to download and play the games offered at various casinos, the playing experience was not a very enjoyable one. Small, low resolution screens and sub-par processing speed all made for a less than spectacular gaming experience. Fast forward to 2009, and the iPhone and iPhone competing offerings from other major handset manufacturers, and the norm now is big screens, high resolution, fast processors and web browsing capabilities perfect for game play and in the casinos case, blackjack, baccarat, roulette or slots play.

A handful of casinos are starting to promote their mobile games pretty hard now…most notably some of the larger Playtech and Microgaming casinos. Game range is still limited (15 odd games including blackjack, baccarat, roulette, video poker, keno, slots and progressive slots) and downloaded on a game by game basis to limit file sizes loaded to phones.

Of course the games aren't quite as graphically spectacular as those offered on the PC downloadable game suites, but given they are specifically designed as lite file size small screen games, they serve their purpose very well. Remember, this is software designed by two companies who have managed to become leaders in a very, very competitive industry, so you wouldn't expect them to be too far off the mark.

Now that the delivery mechanism has caught up to the product, the number of casinos on this bandwagon is sure to surge soon.

Milton Shaw has written hundreds of online gambling related articles for popular casino and sportsbook portals like Casinos Page and 4 Online Gambling